Topic: Mohamed Salah - Best in the World *

[Knight]

In the last couple weeks we’ve seen Haaland, Bellingham, all look out of form, Saka didn’t look great yesterday either and has been subject to heavy critique.

Last week a lot  on here were calling Mbappe overrated based on his CL performance also, maybe posters on here are right and he’s come to the point where there will be a sharp decline due to age.. I would say though people should express caution in making snap judgments because 1. it’s not the first time or season he has had a dip in form after AFCON and 2. Every player in the world goes through a dip in form at some point, including all the aforementioned names which many posters on here would call overrated.

Given he is having one of his most productive seasons here and started the first part well I would say he deserves some more time before making such judgements, afterall it’s not like he isn’t on route to having another 20 goal + 10 assist season in the league alone.

You consistently make this point very well. I really hope you’re right.

[Samie]

He is done as a wide forward/winger. His pace is all but gone. I think he will leave in the summer but if he stay's he should become a centre forward.

[KissThisGuy]

You consistently make this point very well. I really hope you’re right.

His stats this season are unbelievable. If he were 28 we would just be saying he's in poor form while coming back from injury. He has definitely lost a yard of pace, but I don't think what we're seeing the last few weeks is a result of that. Of course at some stage he will be past it, but I don't think we're at that stage yet. When that will be, it's hard to know. Maybe next season we'll see a big decline, or maybe it's a few more seasons away.

P.S. I don't think him missing that chance today was down to a poor attitude. "Fuck it, I'll just kick it wide. I couldn't be bothered trying to hit the target. I'm half thinking of not even throwing my foot at it."

[keano7]

I think he’s playing through the pain barrier and deliberately not fully extending himself. He’s morphed into a deep lying ‘Messi’ role the last few games which hasn’t worked.

Kneejerk reaction from some to simply sell him if we get a decent offer in the summer. He’s still irreplaceable for the amount of goals / assists he would still get next season. Look how bad Saka has been the last two games and he’s the Salah lite version.

[decosabute]

In the last couple weeks we’ve seen Haaland, Bellingham, all look out of form, Saka didn’t look great yesterday either and has been subject to heavy critique.

Last week a lot  on here were calling Mbappe overrated based on his CL performance also, maybe posters on here are right and he’s come to the point where there will be a sharp decline due to age.. I would say though people should express caution in making snap judgments because 1. it’s not the first time or season he has had a dip in form after AFCON and 2. Every player in the world goes through a dip in form at some point, including all the aforementioned names which many posters on here would call overrated.

Given he is having one of his most productive seasons here and started the first part well I would say he deserves some more time before making such judgements, afterall it’s not like he isn’t on route to having another 20 goal + 10 assist season in the league alone.

I take the point you're making, but I think this past month goes beyond a normal, explicable/excusable dip. He's gone off a cliff and pretty much contributed nothing in 2024.

I'm not saying he has to be sold, but simultaneously I don't think we can just pretend like this is a normal couple of game of bad form. Salah has contributed very little since December. I know he's been injured for a lot of that time, but it's not normal for your talisman and (by far) highest earner to totally fall off a cliff for an extended period at the business end of a season.

I love the guy, but I'm amazed how poor he's been. It's baffling and hard to watch, but it's OK to admit it.

[Coolie High]

I take the point you're making, but I think this past month goes beyond a normal, explicable/excusable dip. He's gone off a cliff and pretty much contributed nothing in 2024.

I'm not saying he has to be sold, but simultaneously I don't think we can just pretend like this is a normal couple of game of bad form. Salah has contributed very little since December. I know he's been injured for a lot of that time, but it's not normal for your talisman and (by far) highest earner to totally fall off a cliff for an extended period at the business end of a season.

I love the guy, but I'm amazed how poor he's been. It's baffling and hard to watch, but it's OK to admit it.

I don’t agree with this at all, I think he has had some good games that are probably just lost in the memory. He came back from Afcon and got shortly injured soon after, then got injured again if my memory recalls, I wouldn’t be so quick to write him off because I’m pretty sure people were saying similar last season and maybe even a couple seasons before after he came back from the AFCON.

[PaleBlueDot]

I love the guy, but I'm amazed how poor he's been. It's baffling and hard to watch, but it's OK to admit it.

Step too far for some in here.

[decosabute]

I don’t agree with this at all, I think he has had some good games that are probably just lost in the memory. He came back from Afcon and got shortly injured soon after, then got injured again if my memory recalls, I wouldn’t be so quick to write him off because I’m pretty sure people were saying similar last season and maybe even a couple seasons before after he came back from the AFCON.

What good performances? Fine saying that, but tell me when? I would say he looked great vs Brentford, coming off the bench when he made his first comeback from injury - very lively, very creative. But ever since that game, where his injury reoccurred, he's done so little. Came on vs City and played a great pass soon after for Diaz, bud otherwise didn't look good.

Was subbed in both games at Old Trafford because he was so poor. Scored vs Brighton but missed chance after chance. A previous version of Salah would've had at least two or three from that game. Since then, he's either been sub or gotten subbed off, playing awful in each of the last four.

But despite how pissed off I am at his disappearance when we needed him the most, I still haven't "written him off" or definitely decided he needs to be sold.

[lgvkarlos]

Looks lost out there.

[G Richards]

Great player for years for us and still our most reliable source of goals. But obviously he is past peak. How fast is the decline? Hard to say. His recent injury layoff complicates it a bit, as some of what we are witnessing right now is a player coming back from injury, and looking to find a step as he trusts his body again, while also shaking off a bit of rustiness. Still, the overall backdrop is a declining player.

Edwards gets paid the big bucks to know when to make the decisions on this sort of thing. He, along with Hughes, will have all the data and info at their fingertips, and will have an informed view on what to do. And of course the player has agency in all this, as he has another year on his contract.

Personally I would sell, to the highest bidder, likely to be the Saudis, but it remains to be seen if Mo wants to do that.

The new manager can reinvest the funds as he shapes his team.

[Passmaster Molby]

He’s playing like he has already been told he is leaving this summer and not getting a new contract. He looks a shadow of his normal self, the drop off is incredible.

[_00_deathscar]

How many has he scored? And how many games has he missed this season?

5 of his 17 in the league alone are penalties

[xbugawugax]

In the last couple weeks we’ve seen Haaland, Bellingham, all look out of form, Saka didn’t look great yesterday either and has been subject to heavy critique.

Last week a lot  on here were calling Mbappe overrated based on his CL performance also, maybe posters on here are right and he’s come to the point where there will be a sharp decline due to age.. I would say though people should express caution in making snap judgments because 1. it’s not the first time or season he has had a dip in form after AFCON and 2. Every player in the world goes through a dip in form at some point, including all the aforementioned names which many posters on here would call overrated.

Given he is having one of his most productive seasons here and started the first part well I would say he deserves some more time before making such judgements, afterall it’s not like he isn’t on route to having another 20 goal + 10 assist season in the league alone.

FIFA and UEFA would look at the players form and schedule more matches in the middle east of course to get the players form back. At least Salah is at the tail end of his career. and he is good enough football brain to change his playing style as years catch on. Thankfully he has a cabinet full of trophies to look back upon. No idea how the younger lads like saka/mbappe going to be playing well into their 30s.

Their schedule is brutal.

[latortuga]

Having looked at Salah's historical data there really is no way draw any definitive conclusions about Salah's form at different periods of the season.  Perhaps only that March tends to be his worst month historically.

The only thing you can say with certainty, is like any striker he has dips in form.

Claims that he always finishes seasons badly - which I've seen many repeat - isn't accurate and changes from one season to the next.

No doubt his 2021/22 end of season stats were very bad and perhaps as it was a crucial moment in our history that sticks in people's minds, but he has had other seasons where he has been above his averages at the end of seasons.  Even last season in his final 8 games he was 4 goals in 8 games, but while he didn't score in his last 3 games he had an incredible 5 assists over those 3 games.

Here's a shocking statement...perhaps Salah's own form has a direct relationship to that of the team's.  We can all see the team is struggling for their best form at the moment and naturally that won't help Salah find his best form - a non-mutually exclusive relationship.

[RedSince86]

Again that mid season African Nations has ruined his season.

His output after coming back from them shows his numbers dropping considerably.

[decosabute]

Again that mid season African Nations has ruined his season.

His output after coming back from them shows his numbers dropping considerably.

He barely played at AFCON though. And while it does seem like the injury has affected him badly, he still looked good when he came back vs Brentford in February.

People are still using the injury as an excuse and saying he's playing through pain, but he's been back for ages and had the whole international break here at Kirkby to work on getting back to match fitness. And he's been rotated a couple of times and subbed often, so he's not getting overplayed. Despite all that, he's been awful.

I'm completely mystified by this terrible run he's on, but I don't think you can pin it all on AFCON. In 2022 it felt like that was a big factor, but not so much now.

[spider-neil]

I will be surprised if he gets a new contract. Not with Edwards calling the shots.

[jillcwhomever]

I will be surprised if he gets a new contract. Not with Edwards calling the shots.

He had better get Salah's replacements right then. I say replacements as there is no like for like replacement out there. It will need two players to replace what we lose with Salah. It certainly won't be as straightforward as his critics on here think.

[Caps4444]

Having looked at Salah's historical data there really is no way draw any definitive conclusions about Salah's form at different periods of the season.  Perhaps only that March tends to be his worst month historically.

The only thing you can say with certainty, is like any striker he has dips in form.

Claims that he always finishes seasons badly - which I've seen many repeat - isn't accurate and changes from one season to the next.

No doubt his 2021/22 end of season stats were very bad and perhaps as it was a crucial moment in our history that sticks in people's minds, but he has had other seasons where he has been above his averages at the end of seasons.  Even last season in his final 8 games he was 4 goals in 8 games, but while he didn't score in his last 3 games he had an incredible 5 assists over those 3 games.

Here's a shocking statement...perhaps Salah's own form has a direct relationship to that of the team's.  We can all see the team is struggling for their best form at the moment and naturally that won't help Salah find his best form - a non-mutually exclusive relationship.

But the issue is, in my opinion, is the lack of pace now.  I recall in interview Zinchenko did, when asked who was the toughest opponent.  He said Mo. He said his explosiveness was unplayable.  Mo just doesn’t have that anymore. He will be 32 in June.

[Redbonnie]

There are different factors that that make parting ways not outlandish:
1. His legs- he's not quick enough for the wing anymore and IMO he gets shrugged off it too easily to play in the middle.
2. His wages- IMO we should rotate him more at the stage but a player sitting out a decent chunk of the season is not worth £400k
3. Tactics- other players need to do more work to carry him and they play with less freedom when he's on the pitch.

If an offer of £150m comes in, I'd take it after considering the points above.

This is not personal even though some usual suspects will try to make it so. If you don't agree, you can give reasons why the current version of Mo Salah is worth £400k and why he's worth us forgoing 100 odd million. That's the point of a forum.

Good post it’s not personal it’s business.

[decosabute]

He had better get Salah's replacements right then. I say replacements as there is no like for like replacement out there. It will need two players to replace what we lose with Salah. It certainly won't be as straightforward as his critics on here think.

This might have been the case at one point, but definitely isn't now.

It's not straightforward though to be fair. If Salah had been playing the whole season at his current level, then I'd be sure we should try to sell and rebuild. But he was still very good until the end of 2023. It's a very hard one for Edwards and co. But I'd be surprised if they aren't at least seriously considering taking the big money if it's offered in the summer.

[farawayred]

He had better get Salah's replacements right then. I say replacements as there is no like for like replacement out there. It will need two players to replace what we lose with Salah. It certainly won't be as straightforward as his critics on here think.

That's right. I think we should be thinking about seeing the fruits of replacing Salah in the season after the one coming. There won't be a direct replacement of his goals and assists, unless we get lucky (like we did with him when he came in). There is no easy solution, but I'm now leaning toward cashing in on him. Macca's got the penalties, the rest will somehow have to be worked out.

[JRed]

Personally, I always expected Salah to leave after this season. However, to all those who want him out, who replaces him? None of our current attackers are showing that they can reach Salah’s numbers so it would mean a massive outlay on transfers. So we could be in for another depressing transfer thread over the summer!

[Redbonnie]

Again that mid season African Nations has ruined his season.

His output after coming back from them shows his numbers dropping considerably.

I don’t think he should have gone at his age, not given how important he is for the team.

[jillcwhomever]

Out of interest those who want shot of Salah would you get rid of f all the 30+ players? Or does this just apply to Mo? It's appeared to me for a while, that we lack a certain amount of leadership at the moment. So, how far would everyone go here?

[spider-neil]

Personally, I always expected Salah to leave after this season. However, to all those who want him out, who replaces him? None of our current attackers are showing that they can reach Salah’s numbers so it would mean a massive outlay on transfers. So we could be in for another depressing transfer thread over the summer!

It's not a case of wanting him out. Edwards is in charge and I don't see him giving Salah a contract. If Edwards were in charge he wouldn't have given Henderson a contract.

[Draex]

Out of interest those who want shot of Salah would you get rid of f all the 30+ players? Or does this just apply to Mo? It's appeared to me for a while, that we lack a certain amount of leadership at the moment. So, how far would everyone go here?

It’s really hard Jill, we’ve looked our best this season when we had a mix of experience with youth.. Bradley, Quansah, Danns, Clark when getting minutes played with no fear and bundles of energy.

So for me I wonder if some of the older guard need a refresh as much as the team does, but no we can’t rip up the squad but we also need to bring in new ideas, fresh energy and give others a chance to step up into that leadership position.

Robbo, Van Dijk, Alisson, Trent is enough to retain for another year etc.

I just don’t get why we keep trying the same formation and tactics, Mo needs a right back or midfielder bombing on creating an overlap so he can get central. His days as a winger who would beat his man every time he got the ball is over so currently he’s a black hole as an outlet.

I’d love us to see Mo central with Nunez and Diaz running the channels off him, Mo still is our most creative forward with the best chance creations, get him where he can do that rather than stuck out wide and against very fast fullbacks who now can beat him.

[decosabute]

Out of interest those who want shot of Salah would you get rid of f all the 30+ players? Or does this just apply to Mo? It's appeared to me for a while, that we lack a certain amount of leadership at the moment. So, how far would everyone go here?

Most of our players aren't going to have nine figure fees offered for them. Most of our players aren't about to turn 32.

You can try to spin it like Salah is being scapegoated and we're all awful for wondering if the club might be considering not offering him a new deal and getting a big fee for him. But the reality is, it's just people wondering what's best for the club to compete in the long term.

Maybe that's with Salah staying and maybe it's not, but I don't like this dismissive attitude of "you're all clueless because you'd even consider the option of Salah going".

[spider-neil]

Also, with regard to replacing Salah's output, maybe the new manager's plan will be to be more secure at the back so you don't need three forwards with huge output numbers.

[jepovic]

Nobody knows if its just a temporary drop in form, or if he's a new Mane. Maybe he's not 100% back from the injury. I assume that he himself and Klopp have a lot more insight though.

I dont mind if he stays, he's still a top player, but after this season I'm also not gonna get too upset if he's sold. I think it will be a lot up to Salah himself, and of course what bids come in. If the Saudis come in with a 200M bid, but early in the summer this time, I'd be shocked if we say no.

[Zlen]

Out of interest those who want shot of Salah would you get rid of f all the 30+ players? Or does this just apply to Mo? It's appeared to me for a while, that we lack a certain amount of leadership at the moment. So, how far would everyone go here?

Same as with any player I suppose, if an offer comes that is above what we value the player at - it will be considered. There are no guarantees either way, whatever we do. There is only one guarantee, Salah who is 32, will next year be 33 years old. That's all. His career is coming to an end sooner rather than later. What those in charge need to do is weight all the options and make the right call. This will also be determined by the next manager and how Salah might feature in his plans. He certainly isn't irreplaceable, nor should we give him any special dispensation in terms of contract and playing time because he is one of Liverpool's greats.

All I really care is that we stop playing him for 90 minutes when he is clearly completely out of form, looks tired and half-arsed while still being the focal point of our play. You can't have the player everyone is looking for, be the black hole where passages of play go to die. We either reshuffle the deck and find him a more suitable position, or we start using him sporadically to save his legs and give him time to refocus.

[killer-heels]

People are still not able to answer who definitively replaces Salah and his numbers in this squad. Salah is still the star and quite frankly any combination of the four remaining has their own issues and is quite frankly a rung down in talent levels compared to what City put out.

We are making a sport of losing our top players and frankly not replacing them.

[Zlen]

People are still not able to answer who definitively replaces Salah and his numbers in this squad. Salah is still the star and quite frankly any combination of the four remaining has their own issues and is quite frankly a rung down in talent levels compared to what City put out. We are making a sport of losing our top players and frankly not replacing them.

One player?
Nobody.

Different system and type of player?
Probably many options that could do it. Having a pacy dribbler on the right might open up acres of space elsewhere and create lots of chances and goals for other players.

[Barryg21]

People are deluded if they think he will be sold for £150M. Last year was the year - Saudi prices were crazy, and not a single signing from last summer has worked out

Furthermore he has 1 yr left on his contract and he looks shot now. He doesnt deserve a place in the starting 11 and people are acting like he will be subject to a bidding war.
What European club would pay big money for him?
PSG wont want him - he wouldnt get into their side on merit either

1 Saudi team will offer £50M and then we have a decision to make
Personally I would take it, as it's £50M this summer, or nothing the year after. And with his wages you are paying £70M for 1 yr of football for a 32 yr old whose output on every metric has fallen off a cliff
Aint gonna happen......

[jillcwhomever]

Most of our players aren't going to have nine figure fees offered for them. Most of our players aren't about to turn 32.

You can try to spin it like Salah is being scapegoated and we're all awful for wondering if the club might be considering not offering him a new deal and getting a big fee for him. But the reality is, it's just people wondering what's best for the club to compete in the long term.

Maybe that's with Salah staying and maybe it's not, but I don't like this dismissive attitude of "you're all clueless because you'd even consider the option of Salah going".

My point is, we have a number of players approaching their 30's now so it goes without saying planning is needed. But it's got to be done with foresight. The likes of Van Dijk has had his issues as well, yet there doesn't seem the same enthusiasm to break with him, in the way there is for Salah. Get shot of the majority of 30+ players we will just end up like Arsenal.

[killer-heels]

One player?
Nobody.

Different system and type of player?
Probably many options that could do it. Having a pacy dribbler on the right might open up acres of space elsewhere and create lots of chances and goals for other players.

Even if we get a pacy winger we will need to see Nunez increase his goal return considerably and Gakpo become more of a goal threat. I can consider selling Salah if we had confidence in one of the players we have currently, but all of them have question marks. Thats not the case when we sold Mane and Coutinho, our best attackers were still at the club.

[spider-neil]

People are still not able to answer who definitively replaces Salah and his numbers in this squad. Salah is still the star and quite frankly any combination of the four remaining has their own issues and is quite frankly a rung down in talent levels compared to what City put out.

We are making a sport of losing our top players and frankly not replacing them.

If you are more defensively sound the need for a huge output is lessoned because one goal will be enough to win games. Currently, we need at least two goals to win games. Last night was our first clean sheet in an age.

[killer-heels]

If you are more defensively sound the need for a huge output is lessoned because one goal will be enough to win games. Currently, we need at least two goals to win games. Last night was our first clean sheet in an age.

You still have to be able to score goals. City and Arsenal have clocked as much if not more goals than us.

[Zlen]

Even if we get a pacy winger we will need to see Nunez increase his goal return considerably and Gakpo become more of a goal threat. I can consider selling Salah if we had confidence in one of the players we have currently, but all of them have question marks. Thats not the case when we sold Mane and Coutinho, our best attackers were still at the club.

Sure, obviously the rest of the attack isn't on solid legs as it was before. But it's not impossible really.

For me the whole thing is weighting up the value of keeping him (in a different role, because we're still playing like it's 2018 Salah) versus replacing him with something different. And there are many aspects to that decision, lot of them yet unknown, like the new manager, or who else might we buy or sell. It's not even close to being straightforward in any direction - even if we got a juicy offer for him. Even then, there is a scenario in which keeping him is the better option for Liverpool.

In the end it will be his call. Because I'm pretty sure we will offer him a contract more in line with his projected future capabilities - he might not accept that anyway, being a global star and all.

[spider-neil]

Sure, obviously the rest of the attack isn't on solid legs as it was before. But it's not impossible really.

For me the whole thing is weighting up the value of keeping him (in a different role, because we're still playing like it's 2018 Salah) versus replacing him with something different. And there are many aspects to that decision, lot of them yet unknown, like the new manager, or who else might we buy or sell. It's not even close to being straightforward in any direction - even if we got a juicy offer for him. Even then, there is a scenario in which keeping him is the better option for Liverpool.

In the end it will be his call. Because I'm pretty sure we will offer him a contract more in line with his projected future capabilities - he might not accept that anyway, being a global star and all.

That is ultimately what is going to happen. We will offer him a wage (likely reduced to what he is currently on) and if he rejects we'll consider offers as he will be a free agent next summer.